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'tuitcd gte-ttes met Comite Letters Paten-t "No.9( i,060, dated October 19, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN SPIKES.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making ,part of the same.

To all whom. lit may concern ,Be it'known tha-t I, WILLIAM V. WALLACE, of the city, county, and Sta-te of New York, have iuvented'a.

new aud useful Improvement in Ralway-Spikes; and I do hereby declare the following to bea. true, cler, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same.

The nature of my invention consists in the construction of spikes, in'two parts, two different forms involving substantially the same principle, all' herein shown and described.

The lower portion of The spike proper is made somewhat of im arrow-heardv shape, in one instnncehaving an .inverted wedge-shape projection upon onsde thereof, sothat the portion 'used ns n clinch shall, when coming in Contact with the wedge above referred to, the driving down of the cmlwill canse the points, or lower ends` thereofl to diverge, and operate to clinch and fasten the spike in the material into A.which it is driven. A

AToeuehle others skilled inl the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the const-ruction and operation of the szune.

Figures 1, 2, and 3, illustrate one i'orm of' my improved spike. u Fig. 1 shows the shape of the main portion ot' the sume., it being formed with the nsunlvhend upon it, und its point being a wedge or airow-slnipe.

-At the point K it is rounded up, until it meets the main body of the spike.

A groove, i, 'is formed on euch side of this spike, to receive'upon and within it the cnp and eliucherb, with itspr'ojecting ribs j, as seen in tig. 2.l

The spike, Iig; 1, is first driven where needed, and the wedge-shape of' its point lenve's n sufiicient space around the shank ofthe spike to receive the cap b, which, when driven down, the lower ends or points ot' the same, as at 1 1 1, coming in contact with the portion "K of the spike, will be impelled outward, asshown in lig. 3,-end the whole will be firmly clinched" anni held in position.

Figures 4, 5, and 6, represent a. modification ot' this spike, fig. 4 being the spike proper, tig. 5, the cl'iu'cher, and fig. 6,- the positions of' the same when driven.

This spike is formed with :t wedge-shapedvprojec# tion, e, upon its back side, containing also the groove g. The. spike being first driven home, the clincher d, coutaiingnpou it the rib h., is driven down upon the spike c, the rib h fitting into the groove y, and when Athe points 2 are forced upon the wedge e, these l points, by reason of the split or slot'f being eut upon the clincher dpwillbe sepztrnted and diverge, ns'

shown in fig. (i, thereby firmly retaining the spike in position.

W'hat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure -by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination of n spike, for railroad or other purposes, containing upon its shm1k,above the wedgeshaped point, grooves running to t-hel top or head thereof, with a. double-pronged clincher, containing at rib or ribsto fit into the aforesaid grooves, in the mnuncr and for the purposes herein described.

2. The combination of 'the spike a, and its cap and double-pronged clincher i), asand for 'the purposes herein described.A

' WM. V. WALLACE.

Witnesses:

NATHAMEL GILL', WM. H. GLARKsoN. 

